Today's Experience

[Cuc Tu]

nx5000 laptop - set to boot Puppy Linux.

For some reason, it booted windows instead. I have not used Windows in a week or so, but it was working fine before.

In XP, the wireless connection failed to connect to preferred network. I tried several times, scanning, reconnecting, properties, removing the network, trying again...

The I shut down and powered back up - like normal, it booted puppy and all seemed as usual, until I went to browse.

My home page is a local HTML page, but when I clicked a link to go outside, I was greeted with a Cisco login screen. I must be connected to some other network.

Puppy fails to connect to my local network after multiple attempts.

I get the cable, check the router and the wireless is set to Open - no security. Maybe it forgot?
(disclaimer - OK, this time actually wireless security was still enabled, but I had this same experience a week or so ago and it was disabled - yeah, the exact same sequence).

After rebooting everything, I get into puppy and setup wireless and here I am.

Twice maybe has not established a pattern, but it's making me concerned why I'm not able to connect to my home wifi and am automatically connecting to some other network.

[jlreich]

If I read your description correctly it sounds like the router is getting flaky and losing its configurations.

[Cuc Tu]

Well, that is what I thought, but this time the router was set-up correctly.

If it happens again I'll check other computers that are set up to connect wirelessly.

It might be this notebook. First it skipped booting from CD, then wireless would not connect.

[Paul Komski]

A flakey router can be a real PITA. Its SSID may appear in the lists of available networks and be reported as having an excellent signal and so on but then either not allow a connection or drop an existing connection - regardless of any security settings.

The Linux or Windows boot choice is stranger unless you are booting Linux from a Live CD. It the latter is the case it is possible that the CD is not always chosen by the BIOS or that the CD recognition during start up is flakey due to a dirty drive or misaligned laser or iffy CD/DVD.

I doubt that the two issues are related - but with computers anything is possible.

[Cuc Tu]

The CD makes sense. It is an older laptop and I am booting a Live CD - CDRW.

Puppy Linux is making it a common occurrence to connect to some other network - the same one. Other PCs are not having a problem connecting to the router, just this laptop.